Maria Callas December 2, 1923 - September 16, 1977

On the 16th of September the Greek general election will take place. On that same date Maria Callas died 30 years ago. So, I decided to run my own pre-election campaign: its aim is that this divine voice reaches as many people as possible from now until September the 16th.

Vacations diary part II: Spain-Catalonia

Let me start with the positive things, that is with the people we met in the guest house we stayed: a lovely couple from Belgium, the German owners, a newly wed couple - the girl Irish, the boy German -, a very decent English family, but also not in the guest house a Dutch former circus clown that showed us around in a small winery we visited as their public relations man. We also liked a lot the local Penedès wines, even the whites, which until then Imust admit didn't hold in great esteem. In the positive things I must also include Gaudi's city: Barcelona, but in the negatives the thousands of tourists flooding it. We also didn't like the food, which we found overpriced, too - or perhaps we just went to the wrong places. The landscape was another thing we didn't like: destroyed by construction cranes, as the whole of Catalonia seemed to be under construction, cranes and lorries everywhere. Also, in comparison to Italy but also France, Catalonia didn't prove very hospitable, at least as regards the very poor number and variety of agritourist places on offer: we had a really hard time finding internet access and then a place to stay, after twenty long hours of driving from Italy through Southern France to Barcelona. Sant Martí Sarroca, a village near our guest house.

A church perched on a hilltop near the village.

Details from La Sagrada Família, the cathedral Gaudi didn't have time to finish, in Barcelona. I have a feeling that he wouldn't have liked the vending machines the Spanish put inside, which you have to also pay 8 euros to see. The interior generally seems to be under construction, with not much to see - except the vending machines, of course!

At the famous monastery of Montserrat, near Barcelona.

A small winery in Penedès. The Dutchman who showed us around spoke six languages, traveled through Europe for 2o years as a circus clown where (at a circus) he also met his Italian wife. He came to Spain to meet and train near a famous clown and started working in the Penedès wineries, ending up as the puclic relations man of this one.

Strolling through Barcelona.

At the Dali Museum in Figuears near the French border.

A counrty house's garden door in Gaudi style, in a village that was a real work of art, near Figueras. Garraf beach, near Barcelona: summer houses.

Vacations diary part I: Italy

Having just returned home after three weeks of traveling with my wife through Europe, I thought of sharing with you some impressions and pictures from this unique experience. Our trip started in Italy, continued in Spaind and ended in France. Our means of transportation was our little jeep, and we used the internet to find agritourist places to stay. The itinerary simple: form Igoumenitsa by boat to Ancona and from there to Tuscany for one week. Then, via southern France we reached Spain for a stay of one week in Catalonia - after 20 hours of non-stop driving from Tuscany with Barcelona as our final destination - and in particular Penedès, a wine-producing area near Barcelona. After Spain our last week was spent in southern France, in the French Riviera. This as an introduction. Part I then: Italy - Tuscany. Let me start with the postitive things, which means the food - I loved the pizzas - and the excellent wine, especially in the Chianti region at the heart of Tuscany. Also, there was a great variety of agritourist places to stay. We stayed in a spacious old house with two bedrooms and a fully equipped kitchen, for the VERY reasonable price of 70 euros per night. Compared with Spain and France, Italy was by far the best in the number and variety of agritourist guest houses. The best part was of course the Tuscany countryside, with the vineyards and the characteristic sunflowers, the picturesque small villages and the old towns, some of which you can see in the pictures that follow. As regards the negative things, I must mention the fact that Italians seem to drive their cars to their limits like crazy, and with the lights turned on all day long - so I wouldn't dare drive in the fast lane in the autostrada, not with our little jeep. Also, unleaded petrol was very expensive compared to its price in Greece - around 1.30 euros per litre in Italy - and the tolls were so expensive - in France, too - that we started trying to find provincial roads in order to avoid paying what seemed like wasted money. Where we stayed: Castiglion Fiorentino near Arezzo. San Gimignano. Let me say here that even in the smallest Italian village parking was fully controlled, which I think is a good thing financially for the place and also saves it form the parking anarchy that one encounters in Greece. The Tuscany countryside: in the heart of the Chianti area. Tasting and buying wine in Castellina in Chianti. Palazzo del Campo in Siena. A beautiful house in the countryside. The sunflowers, plenty of them in Tuscany. Montepulciano, with the good red wine. Florence. Pienza, homeland of the best pecorino cheese.
The view from Cortona, a little after sunset.
Arezzo.


After all the driving in Italy I was leaning a bit, like the famous tower.